Stormy Promises
by Ladya C. Maxine
Summary: Little Inuyasha is scared of thunder, but at least his big brother's always there to protect him. Oneshot.


Title: Stormy Promises 

Authoress: Ladya C. Maxine

Rating: K

Summary: Inuyasha is scared of thunder. Luckily, his big brother is always there to protect him...

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or any of its characters. I am not making any money off of this and I write for the sole pupose to entertain.

A/N: I've never seen this particular episode with the moth demon and Inuyasha's transformation, (only heard abou it), so sorry if it isn't all that accurate, though it only plays a small part in this fic.

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**Stormy Promises**

_by Ladya C. Maxine_

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"I'm not gonna be scared...I'm not gonna be scared...I'm not gonna be scared..." he repeated to himself over and over again, clutching the thick blanket to his chin. Wide golden eyes darted from one place to the next, the slightest of movements making him retreat beneath the comforter.

A explosive clap of thunder made him yelp and he pulled his pillow over his head, trembling as the rumbling echo slowly diminshed in the howling gales that swept outside of his window, making the glass tremble under their great force.

"I'm not gonna get out of bed...I'm not gonna get out of bed..."

Sitting amongst the many pillows and furred blankets, Inuyasha willed himself to stay put. To not run crying to his mother. That was for pups. He wasn't a pup! He was a big person too and big persons didn't let something like a thunder storm frighten them.

His room lit up as an enormous bolt of lighting crackled outside. A few seconds later the thunder came, the noise so great that it hurt his sensitive ears. Flattening them against his head in hopes of blocking out the sound, he curled into a small ball.

"It's only a storm. Nothing's gonna happen."

His ears perked when he heard a scraping sound against his windows. Was something outside? Trying to get in? A horrible monster who used the cover of thunder to sneek into little children's rooms and eat them? A thunder demon?

"I'm not a little pup. I'm big boy."

The scraping persisted. In reality it was only a bare branch of the tree outside his room which was being blown about in the forceful gales but to the young pup's wild mind it was definitely a thunder demon, getting more and more hungry as it tried to get in.

Peeking out from beneath his pillow, Inuyasha watched with wide and aprehensive eyes, waiting to hear the window break and to see a horrifying face poke itself into the room. Outside the winds lessened but he only took it for the monster to be giving up. Releasing a sigh of relief, he crawled out from under the blankets.

"Maybe it did see me but saw that I'm a big boy. Maybe I scared it away!" he smiled at the thought. Just wait till he told his mother and father in the morning. They will be so proud! And his brother--!

BOOM!

A ear shattering clap of thunder drowned out his shrill yip of fear. The monster was really angry now! It was coming to get him!

Whimpering, he quickly crawled out of his bed, backing away from the window.

"I shouldn't be running away...I'm brave, just like father--"

BOOM! BOOM!

He threw his door open and ran out into the hall, quickly closing it behind him and leaning against it as he drew ragged breaths. His little chest heaved as he fought the urge to cry. He could still hear the monster. In fact, it was everywhere. Even on the roof, beating at the tiles with many feet, running all over the place.

'Mother and father are big. The monster wouldn't come get me if I'm with them.'

The thought was reassuring but looking down the hall he gulped. His parents' room was on the floor beneath this one, which meant he would have to walk down the long and scary hall and the dark and cold stairs to reach them. Who knew how many monsters where hiding there, waiting for him.

Unbeknownst to him, a window high above in the hall had not been closed properly, allowing a few stray drops of rain inside. One of them trickled down the wooden ledge, stopping to hang precariously for a few seconds before releasing its hold and plummeting down. The cold droplet landed on one of his ears.

Feeling the cold, wet substance, he cried out. The monster was inside! It was drooling on him!

Not daring to look up, he tore down the hall, small feet thudding loudly though they were still drowned out by the continuous thunder. His heart was thudding as painfully but he didn't give up. He was almost there...

BOOM! BOOM!

Turning the corner, stumbling in his haste, he pushed himself as fast as his short legs could go. His destination was just at the end of this hall. With a happy cry, he reached the door, slumping against it as he breathed heavily. Checking the hall to make sure the monster hadn't caught up with him, he quietly turned the handle and slipped inside.

The moment he closed the door the room was plunged once more into darkness and he froze, unsure of what to do. Another booming thunder helped him decide faster and he swiftly crept towards the shadowed form of the great bed that stood in the center of the room.

It seemed like forever and his eyes kept darting from left to right and back again but he finally stood beside the bed. Standing on his toes, he was just barely able to peek over the edge. And even then he could only see the many layers of sheets and the countless pillows, the bed's occupent no doubt contently buried amidst them, not at all affected by the storm.

Something soft brushed against his arm and he startled at the sudden contact. Squinting, he was able to make out a long, fluffy tail that swayed ever so slightly on the blankets, relaxed in sleep and comfort. Worrying his lower lip, he wrapped his little finger in the thick fur and tugged gently. The tail jerked and batted his hand away though its owner kept on sleeping. He tried again, this time tugging a little harder and whimpering pleadingly.

Whether it was the extra force or his voice he didn't know, but the other stirred in his sleep. At first the sleeper didn't move, adjusting to awareness, but then the person turned over onto his stomach. Golden eyes opened sleepily from beneath long bangs. They stared at him for a while.

"Sesshou..." Inuyasha whimpered.

The long tail lazily unfurled itself and with surprising gentleness and strenght, it wrapped itself around the small pup's body and lifted him off the ground, laying him down next to his older brother, who pulled the blankets back. He snuggled against his brother's chest, nuzzling the soft night shirt.

Sesshoumaru tucked the blankets back around his little brother and wrapped his arms around the hanyou, sleepily stroking the white hair similar to his until the tremors faded away.

"They can't reach you here," he whispered into a furry ear, making it twitch against his cheek. "Go back to sleep."

Wrapping his arms around his brother's neck, Inuyasha buried his face beneath the chin.

Safe. No ugly monster would dare show its face with Sesshoumaru around. Just like father, Sesshoumaru was really strong. And he was around a lot more often than father, who had to travel a lot, being lord and all. Nothing could ever harm him as long as he was with his brother.

"Sesshou?"

"Hm?"

"One day, I'll be big like you and father, right?"

"Yeah," he said, opening an eye when he felt the pup wriggle in his hold, looking up to face him with those large eyes.

"And then I won't be frightened anymore, right?"

"I guess not."

"Oh..." he fell silent, playing with a silky lock of his brother's hair. "But...you'll still be here for me? In case I do get scared?"

He opened both eyes to regard the hopeful face. The trust in those eyes hurt him. He loved his little brother and wanted to always be there for him, but Sesshoumaru was old enough to know that life was very cruel and heartless. Inuyasha was still too young to understand.

"Inu, I need you to listen to me very carefully."

He looked up at the serious tone in his brother's voice, which had deepened over the past year as Sesshoumaru had enter something his parents told him was called 'puberty'.

"Things happen in life. Some are good, some are bad. And there's nothing that anyone can do about them. It's just how life is, okay?"

Inuyasha nodded, laying his cheek on the other's chest, listening to the steady heartbeat.

"No one knows what's going to happen in the future. All we can do is hold on to the past and cherish the present."

"But we will always be together, right? We can do all that stuff together."

He sat up, minding the pup who was leaning against him. Watching the youngster for a minute, he didn't answer at once. Instead, he leaned over to his nightstand and opened a drawer, removing something wrapped in smooth, burgundy velvet.

"What's that?" Inuyasha asked, resting his cheek on his brother's arm as he watched the youkai undo the straps holding the wrappings together.

"A memory," was his simple answer and he held it out for the pup to see. A necklace and pendant whose golden surface rivalled their eyes. It was carved in the form of a half-moon with a single star hanging from its upper tip, a bedazzling jewel shining brightly in its center.

"Pretty," Inuyasha gasped, lightly touching the star which jangled softly at his touch. "Where did you get it?"

"Father gave it to me when he had gone away to war when I was younger. They were dangerous times and I was afraid that he'd die and leave me alone, like mother did. I told him that and he gave me this and told me that as long as the crystal shines there is always hope."

"Hope for what?"

"Hope in the people you care for. As long as there is love, the crystal will shine."

"Wow," the pup breathed, eyes sparkling as the crystal reflected in them.

"Take it."

"What?" He blinked when his brother placed it in his hands.

"I'm giving it to you."

"No! You can't!" Inuyasha shook his head. "Father gave it to you. It's really special to you. I...I can't take it from you."

"You're not taking it from me. I am giving it to you," Sesshoumaru repeated. "I want you to have it."

"But...why?"

Placing the necklace over the pup's head, leaving it to hang around the slender neck, Sesshoumaru then cupped the round face, locking their eyes together.

"Something is going to happen in the future, Inuyasha. Something really bad. And I fear that it will have a very dark impact on us all. Things change, little brother. Our lives will never stay the way it is now. I just want you to know that, whatever happens, whatever our paths, goals and ideas make us do or say, I will always love you deep in my heart. The crystal will always shine. No matter what, Inuyasha, remember that I love you...Even if I forget. Promise me."

The words were heartfelt and pleading and he curled his fingers tighter around the jewelry.

"I promise, big brother. And I love you too."

Smiling softly, Sesshoumaru placed a light kiss on the snow-white head before laying the both of them back down, wrapping his tail around them both to stave off the chill. His training that day had been long and hard and he soon drifted back off to sleep.

Inuyasha watched the serene face of his older sibling, the words replaying themselves in his head.

'A very dark impact? No. Nothing is ever going to seperate us...It can't...'

Gripping the pendant, he allowed the beat of his brother's heart to lull him off to sleep. Outside the storm raged on, but he no longer cared.

Nothing could ever harm him as long as he had his brother with him. They'd be together forever. They had demon blood in them. They'd live for a long time. And the one person he knew he'd be able to count on to protect him, to accept him, to love him, was Sesshoumaru. Nothing, not time, circumstance of even fate could change that.

**_Years later..._**

Inuyasha blinked out of the heavy haze in his mind, blearily aware of his friends' voices as they spoke from somewhere above him. With a soft groan he rose onto his elbows, shaking his head to clear his mind. A sharp smell caught his attention and he looked down to find his hands and claws coated in blood. What had happened?

He remembered being entrapped in a cocoon; fighting a moth demon; losing control of himself and transforming; and a sudden blow that had caused the most agonizing pain he had ever felt. And a scent...a scent he'd come to loathe...

"Inuyasha!"

Kagome fell to her knees next to him, helping him sit up. Her brown eyes held relief but wary concern as she kept throwing fearful glances to something behind her. The hateful scent grew stronger and and he looked up into cold, golden eyes.

"Sesshoumaru..." he snarled softly.

"I would learn to master that transformation if I were you, half-breed. Consider yourself lucky this time." With that the tall youkai turned and started to walk off.

"That's weird," Miroku commented, walking over to help his friend stand. "Why would he give up a chance like this?"

Rising to stand, Inuyasha gripped his chest as a bruised rib protested but stopped when his hand touched something hard beneath his kimono. Lifting the red fabric he stared at where the sunlight reflected off the small half-moon, its star glittering.

_"...I just want you to know that, whatever happens, whatever our paths, goals and ideas make us do or say, I will always love you deep in my heart...As long as the crystal shines, there is love...The crystal will always shine...No matter what, Inuyasha, remember that...Even if I don't...Promise me..."_

Looking back up at his brother's retreating form, Inuyasha could still recall that voice, just into puberty but still holding onto the charm of childhood.

_"...as long as the crystal shines there is always hope..."_

Raising his head, Inuyasha smiled wryly.

"The crystal's still shining, Sesshoumaru. And I still remember...brother"

Sesshoumaru stopped in his tracks and turned, golden eyes meeting his brother's and for a brief moment Inuyasha saw the soul that had given him the pendant that stormy night decades ago. He saw the usual cold facade crack as he knew the other was caught between remembering and refusing to remember. The inner war lasted a few seconds before the mask slipped back into place and with a final glance, Sesshoumaru turned and walked off, soon fading into the forest's dark edge.

Kagome looked confuse between where Sesshoumaru had disappeared and Inuyasha.

"Inuyasha, what was that all about?"

Not taking his eyes from where his brother had last stood, he shook his head.

"Just reminding him of something."

Not giving them the chance to ask for an explanation, he started walking, resuming the course they'd set earlier.

'There's still hope, Sesshoumaru. Father is gone. Mother is gone. And the star still shines, so there's still love in what's left of our family. There's still love left in you. I won't make you forget that. I promised you.'

Despite his wounds and pains, he felt healed. All was not lost. Somehow, some way, he was going to keep the star's jewel shining and he looked forward to the day that he would return it to its rightful owner.

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THE END

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Read & Review, please. 


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